


Conflicts and Changes

by andrearitsu



Series: BanG Dream! University AU (Working Title) [5]
Category: BanG Dream! Girl's Band Party! (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, F/F, Light Angst, Sequel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-19
Updated: 2018-12-19
Packaged: 2019-09-22 12:46:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,258
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17060051
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/andrearitsu/pseuds/andrearitsu
Summary: Misaki is torn about her conflicting feelings surrounding Kanon, her ex-girlfriend, and Kaoru, her roommate. It seems everything around her is changing and she's unable to figure out what's going on with herself and the world around her.





	Conflicts and Changes

Okusawa Misaki had been suffering a migraine since she had first woken up, late for class, in the arms of her roommate. Her attention span in class was dwindling and despite having slept soundly for a long time she simply felt exhausted and absent. She simply hoped the teacher wouldn’t call on her to read anything and that she’d be able to collect her thoughts and maybe grab a painkiller between classes.

Last night was still vivid in her mind. In sharing their loneliness, her and Kaoru had gone past what Misaki thought herself comfortable with between friends. Her feelings on the matter were conflicted, to say the least. She didn’t regret anything, nor had it been an uncomfortable experience. On the contrary, it had been a wonderful and liberating moment. Yet a question lingered which she could not find an answer to.

_ “Just what is Kaoru-san to me?” _

Misaki wanted to say she was just a close friend. Someone with whom she can share things she can’t share with others. But in the back of her mind she felt there might be more to it and that her still lingering feelings for Kanon and knowing how much Kaoru missed Chisato made her avoid admitting to things that could cause conflict.

After class, Misaki went to the bathroom to take a painkiller and splash some water on her face, hoping it would wake her up a bit. As she looked at her own reflection in the mirror, the door to the bathroom opened and in it came none other than Tsurumaki Kokoro.

“Hey! It’s Misaki!” exclaimed Kokoro, “I was looking for you.”

“H-hey, Kokoro. Why were you looking for me?”

“To give you a formal invitation to the party, of course.”

“The party?”

“The birthday party!” 

“Whose birthday pa-”, Misaki stopped herself as she realized she knew whose birthday Kokoro was referring to, “Kanon.”

“Yeah, it’s soon y’know. It’s coming up this-”

“This monday.” Misaki wiped her face, “I’m not going to be there, Kokoro.”

“Why not?”

“Because I don’t want another fight like at practice… Things are just too strained between me and Kanon right now. You know that, right?”

“But don’t you miss her?”

Kokoro’s question stung like a dagger to Misaki. Of course she missed Kanon. She missed her so much she’d give anything to just be together with her again. But to go to the birthday party just a week after they had forced the band practice sessions to take a hiatus because of the tension between them couldn’t possibly be a good idea.

“Misaki, I don’t know what you’re going through. But I think Kanon would want you there.”

“I don’t think so.”

“But I do. Monday afternoon at four, at my family residence.” Kokoro held out an invitation card.

“Kokoro, I-”

“Promise me you’ll be there.”

“But…” Misaki sighed and took the card, “Fine.”

“Great! Let Michelle know that she’s welcome too.”

“Right, I’ll see if she’s available.”

“Oh! You live with Kaoru now, right?”

“Kaoru…” Misaki felt as if she had been caught doing something bad just hearing the name of her roommate, “Y-yeah, what about it?”

“I have an invitation for her as well, but I’m not sure where her university is so…” Kokoro put another two cards into Misaki’s hands. “One of Kaoru, one for Michelle.”

Before Misaki was able to say another word Kokoro had already turned around and left the bathroom, making Misaki question why she had come in there at all. She pocketed the invitation cards and went back to the classroom for her next class, still feeling distressed about both the birthday party and her newfound confusion about her feelings for Kaoru.

Despite the painkiller, Misaki felt a lingering pain throughout the rest of her school day. Once the last class of the day finally came to and end she got ready to head straight home and just sleep for an hour or two. She didn’t make it to the school gate before something unusual caught her eye.

Ichigaya Arisa, a fellow third grade student, was standing by a tree, checking her wristwatch every few seconds. Her hair, which was usually tied up in twintails, was resting down her back and shoulders.

“Ichigaya-san.” Misaki approached the girl.

“Oh, Okusawa-san. Good afternoon.”

“I never realized how curly your hair was before, why the change in hairstyle?”

“Huh?” Arisa had checked her watch again, “I just woke up the other day and wanted to change something about myself, I suppose.”

“It looks good.”

“Thanks. I’m not entirely used to it myself yet. It catches me by surprise when I see my reflection.”

“It’s strange, I don’t think I ever really changed myself like that.”

“Really?” Arisa gave her a questioning look, “You’ve been walking around in parkas and caps with shoulder-length hair since you were a kid?”

“Well, for as long as I was in charge of my wardrobe and hair length at least.”

“That’s no good. A girl is like a bonsai tree, y’know?”

“I… I don’t.”

“You need to make small adjustments so that you can grow into a new shape.”

“That’s a pretty poetic analogy I guess.”

“I-I didn’t come up with it myself or anything, it’s a common saying.”

“Right.” Misaki watched as Arisa checked her watch again, “Waiting for someone?”

“Saaya, she’s not helping out at the store today so we’re going on…” Arisa abruptly stopped herself, “We’re heading somewhere together after school, that’s all.”

“I’ll leave you to it then.”

“Right, see you around.”

Exiting the gate, Misaki couldn’t help but think about what Arisa had changed about changing yourself. It seemed everyone around her was changing now while she remained the same as before. Kaoru had cut off her long hair. Kokoro had a girlfriend now. Kanon had told her that she wanted to become more independent as her reason for why she thought they should take a break.

Yet Misaki was stuck in a constant status quo.

Once back at the apartment, she quickly undressed down to her tank-top and underwear, ready to collapse into bed. Kaoru wouldn’t be home for another two hours, assuming she doesn’t go out with her kittens again. As she stood by the side of her bed, she looked at her phone, going through recent messages she had missed or deliberately avoided responding to.

She stopped scrolling through message as she remembered a contact she had yet to write a single message to despite having her contact information for nearly two years. It was one of Kokoro’s mysterious black suited ladies who had given Misaki a direct line of contact in case she needed to request anything for Michelle.

Misaki started writing a message to the black suited lady whose name she didn’t know, asking to talk to her later in the week. Before she was able to second guess herself she hit send and threw her phone down on her bed, taking a deep breath. She was still exhausted, ready to just go right to sleep. But something was keeping her from just lying down.

Looking at her bed she instantly remembered last night and waking up in Kaoru’s arms this morning. The bed felt cold and lonely in comparison to then. She glanced across the room towards Kaoru’s bed. Cursing herself, she walked over to it, feeling her heart rate increase. She climbed into the bed, it smelled like the embrace she had slept in tonight. She closed her eyes as she hugged one of Kaoru’s pillows.

“I want to change too.”

**Author's Note:**

> Six days left until Kanon's birthday party. Will Misaki keep her promise to Kokoro? What are her feelings for Kaoru? What is she going to talk to the black suited lady about? So many mysteries~!
> 
> Thank you for reading this. I know my updates on the Bandori University (and 3rd High School Year) series have been slow lately, but I hope people are still interested in what's going on. I realize it's very Hello, Happy World! focus and that's simply because they're my favourite band. I very much intend on including other characters more though, especially once we get to Kanon's birthday party.


End file.
